Centre County adds 92 cases of COVID-19, and other reopening updates for Sept. 17

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Centre County adds 92 cases of COVID-19 to reach 1,600

Centre County reported 92 new cases of the coronavirus Thursday, according to the state Department of Health., to bring the county’s total to 1,600 since March 20. All the new cases are confirmed, and all but a handful are in State College or on the Penn State campus.. Overall, 1,542 cases are confirmed and 58 are probable, and there have been 22,025 negative tests.

About 42% of the county’s total cases (675) have been reported in the past seven days.

The breakdown of Centre County cases by ZIP code is as follows, according to the DOH:

• 16801 (State College): 932 confirmed (80 new cases), 25 probable (2 fewer cases)
• 16802 (University Park): 202 (18 new cases), 1-4 probable
• 16803 (State College): 102 (5 new cases), 6 probable
• 16823 (Bellefonte and Pleasant Gap): 83 (2 new cases), 9 probable (1 new case)
• 16686 (Tyrone): 34, 1-4 probable
• 16866 (Philipsburg): 26, 1-4 probable
• 16827 (Boalsburg): 26 (1 new case), 0 probable
• 16841 (Howard): 25, 1-4 probable
• 16875 (Spring Mills): 25, 0 probable
• 16870 (Port Matilda): 24, 1-4 probable
• 16828 (Centre Hall): 14, 1-4 probable
• 16822 (Beech Creek): 12, 0 probable
• 16666 (Osceola Mills): 8, 1-4 probable
• 16851 (Lemont): 7, 0 probable
• 16853 (Milesburg): 7, 0 probable
• 16844 (Julian): 6, 0 probable
• 16854 (Millheim): 6, 1-4 probable
• 16820 (Aaronsburg): 5, 1-4 probable
• 16845 (Karthaus): 5 (at least 1 new case), 0 probable
• 16865 (Pennsylvania Furnace): 5, 0 probable
• 16877 (Warriors Mark): 5, 0 probable
• 16804, 16829, 16832, 16852, 16860, 16868, 16872, 16874, 16882: 1-4 cases each

The state does not give specific numbers when there are fewer than five cases to protect patient privacy, and does not identify exactly where a case occurred in a ZIP code that spans multiple counties.

One person is hospitalized in Centre County due to COVID-19, according to the state dashboard.

Pennsylvania added 933 positive cases Thursday to raise the statewide total to 147,923. There have been 1.72 million negative tests statewide, and an estimated 82% of patients have recovered.

There have been 7,913 deaths across the state, including 10 new fatalities. The state continues to count 11 COVID-19 deaths in Centre County.

The rate of cases among 19- to 24-year-olds continues to rise, especially in the north-central region, which includes Centre County. In April, about 7% of total cases were in that age group; now, 71% of cases are in that demographic.

The age breakdown of COVID-19 patients across the state is:

• Approximately 1% are 0-4
• Nearly 2% are 5-12
• Approximately 4% are 13-18
• Approximately 12% are 19-24
• Approximately 36% are 25-49
• Nearly 22% are 50-64;
• Approximately 22% are 65 or older

- by Matt Hymowitz

Bald Eagle Area has 2 COVID-19 cases as the DOH retracts the 3rd positive

As students and staff at Wingate Elementary stayed home from school Wednesday, the Bald Eagle Area School District confirmed a third COVID-19 case.

Since Bald Eagle Area reopened for in-person learning on Aug. 25, Superintendent Scott Graham has confirmed three positive coronavirus tests — one adult and two students. The most recent case was reported Tuesday in an elementary student. The school will be closed until at least Sept. 30.

- by Marley Parish

State College athletes and parents rally support for a fall sports season ahead of board meeting

State College is allowed — by the Mid-Penn Conference — to begin football games and other fall sports contests in just over a week, but the status of the fall season is still shrouded in uncertainty.

The State College Area school board of directors will be voting on a proposal from the athletic department Thursday night that would allow the start of the competitive season. While the leanings of the board members are unknown, it appears to be clear where local parents and students stand on the issue.

“We’ve tried to exhaust every single thing that we can to get our athletes to be able to play,” Jen Vandevort, the mother of a State High football player, said.

- by Jon Sauber

Return of Penn State football a ‘psychological booster’ as local businesses still face challenges

Centre County’s beleaguered restaurants, bars and gift shops had an opportunity Wednesday to breathe a sigh of relief for the second time in nearly six months.

The Big Ten announced Wednesday its intention to resume its football season in October, opening the door for fans clad in blue and white to partake in some of Happy Valley’s deeply rooted football rituals.

“With everything going on in this world, you’ll take the good news where you can get it,” Hotel State College & Company Operations Director Curtis Shulman said. “There’s not much better than watching the boys in blue on Saturdays.”

- by Bret Pallotto

Penn State football will play this fall as Big Ten votes to begin season Oct. 23-24

After over a month of uncertainty, Big Ten football is back.

Yahoo Sports, Sports Illustrated and ESPN first reported Wednesday morning that the conference will return to play in the fall of 2020. The league is set to start its season the weekend of Oct. 23-24, allowing for both a conference title game and a chance for its teams to make the College Football Playoff.

- by Parth Upadhyaya

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This story was originally published September 17, 2020 at 11:25 AM.